This isn’t the first time that we learnt about snails, actually it is a topic that we have pursued several times. I guess when your a kid, you can’t get bored about anything that is slimy and as interesting as a snail.

So here are a few facts about snails that you may find interesting and at the very least, you will know the answer to it.

• Snails are not insects but are in fact mollusks and belong to the same family as clams.
• Snails are gastropods, which means “stomach foot.”
• Snails have both female and male reproductive organs.
• The largest snail in the world weighed in at 2lbs and 15 inches long

Now that we have a few interesting facts. Let’s look at the external anatomy of the snail.

1. The Shell: this is the most obvious part of the snail and the one that will be easy for your child to find. It protects the snail and provides a home on its back. Of course, there is a difference between a home and a habitat.
2. The Foot: this makes up most of the body of the snail and is what the snail moves on.
3. Respiratory Pore: there is a small hole on the side of the snails body just below the shell where the snail breaths from.
4. The Head: A pretty obvious part of the body, it is identified by the four tentacles protruding from it.
5. The Tentacles: there are four on the head. Two small ones and two long ones.
6. The Eye Spots: found at the end of the long tentacles, these are the eyes so when you poke a tentacle to get it to go in, you are actually poking the snail in the eye.
7. The Mouth: also found on the head, it contains tongue with file-like teeth, which is called the radula.

For an excellent printout on snail anatomy, I would recommend this site.

Before I close off on this topic, I would like to mention a few things about keeping snails. If your kids are like mine, chances are they have already asked to keep a snail or two. It is very easy to set up a terrarium for a snail and all you need to be sure of having are a few plants, and a cuttle bone so the shells stay hard. In the wild, snails will eat limestone and other rocks to maintain the right amount of minerals to keep the shell hard. In captivity, snails do not have the alternative food so it is important to provide it.

If you are keeping a snail, you can feed it any type of fruit or vegetables (I found they love apples) and you will need to keep the terrarium moist. Spray the snails with a water bottle every day. If you forget, don’t worry too much. Snails will often close up their shell with a plug of mucus and then hibernate during times of drought or lack of food. If your snail does this, simply spray with water and watch as it slowly wakes up.

I hope this fills you in a bit on snails.

Sirena Van Schaik

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I think everyone has those thoughts, well, except children. To them the world around them is filled with wonders. Adventures that we have forgotten in the daily press of adulthood. I remember being so content each summer as I scoured the woods for adventures or pulled fresh water clams out of a cold clear stream. I hated travelling and preferred to stay tucked into my own yard (mind you my yard was a town), and explore to my heart’s delight.

Now you are probably wondering why I am rambling about my childhood and forgotten adventures and it is simply that I have been reminded of the many wonders in my own backyard and all the opportunities for learning that takes place almost under my nose.

Spring is here after all and the world is full of new sounds, new sights and new life. It is a great time to start a growing project with your children or to start mapping out the backyard and all the animals that are making a home in it.

For my own yard, I have a Kildear pair that have laid four speckled eggs (right on the ground) for all to see. It is an amazing experience and it has opened up the door to learn about how other animals protect themselves and their young. (If you aren’t aware of it, Kildears are birds that will pretend to be injured to lure predators away from their nest.)

I also have a red fox that raids the compost and a raccoon that does as well. They offer opportunities to look at tracks in the mud, and discuss animals and how to take care around them. I also have a Turkey Vulture that loves to sit on a post across the road and watch me. I probably look tasty but I have taken some amazing pictures of him and answered a thousand questions about him and the Hawk that is nesting in a tall spruce in our yard.

There is an eco-system just waiting to be explored and I don’t have to travel to the Caribbean (although that would be nice too) to experience wonders and adventure.

So today was just a reminder to take a few minutes and explore your backyard with your child. You will be pleasantly surprised, as I was, at how much life is teeming in your back yard.

Mini Project

Since I am sending you out in your backyard, why not take the time to have a mini project.

What you will need:

• Twine
• 4 sticks
• graph paper
• brushes
• shovels
• magnifying glass
• containers

What you should do:

1. Section of a square in your back yard with the sticks and twine.
2. Allow your child to explore the space and show her how to mark the item on the graph paper.
3. Explore with all the different materials and save some things that can be saved, such as seeds, stems from plants, soil.
4. Label the containers and the graph to remember where you took the samples from and when
5. Spend the next week or so going back to the spot and checking to see if things have changed or if they are the same.
6. Also take the time to exam the items you took from your backyard. This is great for rainy day activities.
7. If you happen to find something really interesting, start a mini project on the topic, i.e. snails (which I will go into the proper care of snails at a later date.)

Sirena Van Schaik

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